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James Lambert murder: Two brothers, 10 and 14, surrender as cops offer $20K reward for info on teen killers

'Something is very wrong when kids are out at 2 am beating and killing an old man,' Tania Stephens, Lambert's niece, said

Update: Two brothers, aged 10 and 14, surrendered to the Philadelphia PD over James Lambert's vicious murder on Monday, July 11, at 4 pm. The police explained that the two brothers were involved in the fatal attack on Lambert, but what role they played in it is unclear. However, the investigation is going strong as per the officials. Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner told CBS 3 Philly, "This is a very, very active investigation. Things are happening hour by hour."

The 10-year-old has since been released, sources say while the 14-year-old boy is being processed on charges of third-degree murder and conspiracy. Krasner said that they could likely face murder charges according to the "very limited information" that they have right now. As previously shared by the police, the group of seven teenagers included 4 males and 3 females. Investigators are hard at work to identify the rest of the culprits which might include more minors. Lambert was hit with a traffic cone several times and died of blunt force trauma. 

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PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA: The heartbroken niece of an elderly man who was beaten to death by a group of teens in Philadelphia last month has revealed how her family is still in shock over losing her beloved uncle.

Tania Stephens, 63, opened up about the vicious killing of her 73-year-old uncle, James Lambert, who was reportedly attacked by teenage thugs, who beat him up with traffic cones around 3 am on June 14, as he was walking down Cecil B Moore Avenue. Authorities released video footage from the incident on Friday, July 8, showing Lambert trying to escape the teens as they followed him and knocked him to the ground with a cone. He tried to pick himself up again and again but the teens kept knocking him down while laughing at his plight.

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Police said Lambert, a lifelong Philly native, was taken to a local hospital, where he succumbed to his injuries the following day. “I’m sick to my stomach over this,” Stephens told the New York Post. “We all can’t stop crying. Who does this? Anyone normal doesn’t beat up and kill a senior citizen walking down the street. Simmie didn’t deserve this."

The devastated niece said she grew up with several generations of her family in a big house in the Fairmount section of the city. She said her uncle, who was retired from construction work, had taken on the responsibility of helping her mother care for her and her 10 siblings after their father died. Stephens said Lambert and his sister, Tania’s mother Elsie Lambert Stephens, 85, were still so close that "Simmie" often went to her house for dinner. The family reportedly gathered every Thanksgiving at Elsie's house. “Everyone would always ask, where’s Simmie, has Simmie got here yet?” Stephens said, remembering her doting uncle. “He just had this swagger, this cool. And he always dressed like he was out of GQ.”

Stephens said Lambert never married but had two daughters and three grandsons. He reportedly overcame a heroin addiction in the 1960s. Lambert was at his sister Elsie's home for dinner just hours before he was attacked on the street. “My mom gave him his platter,” Stephens said. “She gave him barbecued chicken, some mac and cheese, and a dinner roll. She told him, you’re late, there’s no sides left.” Stephens said she didn't know why her uncle was out so late but noted that he was walking on a route he often took.

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That said, none of the teenagers who attacked Lambert had been arrested at the time of publication. The Philadelphia Police Department is attempting to track down their whereabouts and is reportedly offering a $20,000 reward for information leading to their arrest.

“These kids should come forward,” Stephens told the newspaper. “Their parents should come forward. Something is very wrong when kids are out at 2 a.m. beating and killing an old man. We’ve lost God, we’ve lost family, what’s happened to us?” she added.